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Rowan Damisch
Rowan Damisch '''is the male protagonist of the '''Arc of a Scythe book series, trained by Honorable Scythe Faraday to become a scythe. Rowan's empathy is mentioned numerous times, but his empathy is slowly lost after training with Scythe Goddard. Scythe At the beginning, the focus is shifted to Rowan Damisch and his classmate Tyger Salazar, a "splat junkie" whose hobby is jumping off of buildings and attempting to set records for how many days he is dead. The next day, Rowan meets Scythe Faraday, who is gleaning a classmate of his, Kohl Whitlock. Rowan stays in the room while the gleaning is happening and tries to support Kohl, much to Faraday's impression. Nevertheless, Rowan's classmates ostracize him for his failure to save the classmate even though it would have been impossible to do so. Honorable Scythe Faraday invites Citra and Rowan to the Grand Opera. There, he offers them both apprenticeships to become Scythes, though only one of them can actually take the position. After talking to their friends and family, Citra and Rowan both reluctantly accept his offer. The two go to live with Scythe Faraday and gradually learn about scythe life. Around the same time, Honorable Scythe Goddard and his three junior scythes mass-glean an entire flight. Scythe Faraday begins training Citra and Rowan by having them accompany him on gleanings, though they are only spectators. On one day each week, they stay behind and are assigned chores. Citra is to polish Faraday's weapons and Rowan has to choose the next day's victim. Although Scythes are strictly forbidden from having romantic relationships with one another, over time, a romantic relationship develops between the two. Faraday takes Citra and Rowan to a seasonal meeting known as a conclave, where they are tested by Honorable Scythe Curie, dubbed the Grand Dame of Death for her role in the gleanings of the last U.S. President and his Cabinet. Curie asks Rowan what he is most scared of, and Rowan lies on purpose so that Citra doesn't have to feel ashamed that she failed, which upsets Faraday. Xenocrates, the High Blade, is informed that Scythe Goddard disapproves of Faraday taking on two apprentices and agrees that whichever apprentice is chosen must glean the other at the end of their training. Later, Xenocrates visits Citra and Rowan and explains that Faraday violated the 7th Commandment of Scythe law, which states that a Scythe can only legally be killed through suicide, or as the Scythedom calls it, "self-gleaning". This was done by Faraday jumping in front of a moving train. It is realized that he did this in order to free them of their apprenticeships and spare them from death. Unfortunately, this plan would only work if no other scythes took them as apprentices, but Honorable Scythe Goddard wishes to take Rowan and Honorable Scythe Curie agrees to take on Citra. Rowan learns that Goddard is a sadist who openly disregards the rules of the Scythedom and abuses his ability to glean, gleaning whoever he wants and living in a lavish mansion where his followers party on a daily basis. Rowan befriends one of Goddard's less bloodthirsty junior scythes, Scythe Volta, and learns that Goddard has been spreading the idea that scythes should be free to do whatever they want regardless of consequences. He also discovers the reason why Xenocrates has tolerated Goddard's actions--Esme, a young girl and one of Goddard's wards, is Xenocrates's illegitimate daughter. Goddard takes Rowan and the junior scythes to mass glean a group of anti-scythe cultists (Tonists), promising Rowan he will glean someone today (even though he isn't allowed). Rowan tries to help people escape, and finds Volta, right before he commits suicide out of horror and shame. A furious Rowan finds Goddard tying up a surviving cultist so that Rowan can glean him. Instead, Rowan beheads Goddard with his own sword, kills the other scythes, and starts a fire to destroy their bodies. He takes Goddard's robe and ring and convinces the firemen that the fire is scythe business, ultimately preventing them from putting it out. Xenocrates summons Rowan for answers, but the boy points out to him that he knows about Esme. In return, Xenocrates agrees to cover up his crimes. In Citra's journal, she makes a note of "Scythe Lucifer", a mysterious figure who has gained a reputation for assassinating corrupt scythes. She hopes that if she encounters him, he'll see her as one of the good ones.